The present invention relates to devices for stringing cable overhead, such as when stringing power lines onto a series of towers.
Cables are commonly strung overhead on towers (e.g., poles or lattice structures) for transmission of electricity, telephone signals, or data. Prior to stringing the cable, a pilot rope is typically pulled off of a spool and threaded through a series of pulley blocks that are temporarily attached to the tower. The end of the rope is then attached to the cable, and the rope is pulled through the pulley blocks, resulting in the cable being pulled through the pulley blocks. The cable can then be transferred from the pulley blocks to the tower. Alternatively, the cable can be threaded directly onto the pulley blocks without the use of a pilot rope.
Unless otherwise noted, the use of the term “cable” is meant to include cables, ropes, wires, or any other elongated, flexible member that one would want to string onto a tower or through a series of pulley blocks.